Whenever I spend time with good friends, I always feel refreshed and happy afterwards. This time of year, when I've been so busy I tend to lose touch with those people - when you live far from family and friends, or if you become really busy, it can be easy to lose touch with those close to you. As wonderful as it is to have friends that you can pick up right where you left off with, there's lots of good reasons to stay in closer contact! Relationships are important, and are therefore worth making a priority.
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| Me with my sister and best friend |
Sharing conversation, laughs, and ups and downs with the people who you've spent years building a bond with is so rewarding, both mentally and emotionally. It feels good to be loved, understood, comfortable, to connect. It is important to support friends, just as they support us through our joys and sadness. Not only that, but there's no other fun like the fun you have with your good pals! And we all know that having fun is good for the soul :)
My challenge to you is to connect with a friend you've been meaning to contact, once a week for three weeks. I think you'll find that it's worth continuing.
Here's some ideas for connecting with friends to get you started!
1. Pick up the phone and call
Now, this may seem like an obvious one... but when your chores, job, classes, new friends, partner, errands, etc. take up so much time, spending an hour on the phone with friends can seem like something you don't have time for.
If you're finding that you don't have much spare time, try out weekly or monthly calls. Something like, every Sunday evening, or the second Sunday of every month you schedule a phone date. Actually writing it in your planner or schedule is a great commitment reminder!
These days, you can go beyond voice calls for those with the technology. Skype or Facetime is a great way to hang out - have lunch together, show each other what you've been working on, or that cute drawing your little cousin/niece/nephew made you... the possibilites are endless! You can also do conference calls! Checkout Google Hangout where you can video chat with up to 10 people at a time.
By talking even once a month, you'll feel more connected when you keep up with these calls. If you're finding it difficult to make them after work, do double duty and get creative with how you time the calls - while you're folding clothes, on your commute to work (hands free), or while re-organizing your closet.
2. Grab some food together